Where did you get the book: E arc from the publisher
Publisher: Berkley
Release date: April 9th 2024
A prophecy of death. A weapon of hope. A sacrifice of love.
Arwen Valondale is sailing for the mysterious Kingdom of Citrine after the battle of Siren’s Bay. Reeling from shocking revelations and her newfound powers, Arwen directs all of her pain and rage toward the man who betrayed her: King Kane Ravenwood.
Kane’s presence is unavoidable as he travels with Arwen and her friends to seek the Blade of the Sun, a legendary weapon inextricably tied to her fate and the future of the realm. Even an uneasy truce proves difficult as Arwen fights against her unresolved feelings for Kane, who is willing to become darkness itself to protect her.
As Arwen faces creatures, foes, and magic beyond her wildest imaginings, she must discover the secrets of her past to defeat the monstrous Fae king Lazarus. But finding the light within might mean the death of her and everyone she loves.
Blurb taken from Goodreads
I am a huge fan of fantasy romance and in recent years, the subgenre has exploded in popularity that it actually gained a new name, Romantasy with common tropes of a morally grey hero and a powerful resourceful heroine with a quest or trial and an ethereal world. When I first came across this series last year, I was instantly enthralled. The first book, Dawn of Onyx (you can read my review from yesterday here), sets up the story of Arwen, a healer who gets embroiled in warring kingdoms, an enigmatic dark king and a secret prophecy that will save the fate of all the inhabitants of the Stone kingdoms as well as the fae. But like all prophecies there is always that horrible price to pay and this sets up A Promise of Peridot, after the explosive ending of a Dawn of Onyx,
Arwen, who has witnessed the violent death of her mother in the previous book, as well as the betrayal of Kane, the Onyx King who withheld the knowledge of a prophecy which she is key to defeating the true threat to the kingdoms of Evendell. Their relationship is fractured and tense because Arwen is in a turmoil of emotions due to the lack of trust as well as her grief over her mother’s death. While Kane is racked with guilt with the way he has handled by not entrusting Arwen with the truth that she is destined to die because the prophecy has dictated that as the last full fae, she is the only one who is able to kill Lazarus who is on the path to destroying their world.
I loved that Kate Golden has expanded more of the surrounding Stone kingdoms, and we get to see a magical underwater kingdom, Citrine which is ruled by the mer race, a treasure hunt for a powerful blade that had shades of an Indiana Jones quest which was exciting and nerve wracking and a prison island. Although I wished there was a bit more time spent exploring these settings, because they were rich and vivid. I also enjoyed the colourful and at times exotic tapestry of the worldbuilding. The main plot for the quest to find the blade which is the only way to kill Lazarus, who is Kane’s father was fast paced and I was sad that I breezed through this book so quickly and it definitely didn’t suffer from the middle book syndrome.
But the real highlight is the romance between Kane and Arwen, I loved how their relationship evolved from the first installment, which had a fun, flirty vibe to a more deeper angst filled one because of the fallout at the ending in Dawn of Onyx, which added more depth to their relationship. I loved the push and pull overtones and while they were obstacles, I liked that they both learned from their mistakes and the yearning between them. And oh wow! I could literally feel that from reading their scenes, I adored it. I especially love that Kate Golden used the redeemable rake trope with Kane, who is truly head over heels in love with Arwen and despite his feelings is willing to sacrifice everything to give her space and freedom.
I think I loved A Promise of Peridot even more than the first book, and I am eagerly awaiting the final book, A Realm of Rose which is out later this year. Overall, this was a fast paced, imaginative and rich world, with endearing and fleshed out characters and a romance that is not only filled with angst filled yearning but sparkling banter and a sexual tension that grabs you with the feels.
I give A Promise of Peridot a B+